I want to start off by saying that I really enjoyed everything about this book: the characters, the writing, the pacing and plot. Everything was great. Except for one thing that wasn’t. One thing that made me go from giving this book a 5 stars to a 4 stars…Ruby. I’ll start off with this positives first, and then talk about my one negative. WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE DARKEST MINDS AND NEVER FADE!

Plot- The story started off a bit slow, and I wasn’t really sure how I was feeling about it. But I kept going, and it really started to pick up. Next thing I new it was 3:30am and I’m still up reading. I was doing that whole “just one more chapter” thing us readers do. When Ruby finally ended up going on a mission for the League to find Liam and the flashdrive, that’s when it started to pick up and damn it got good! They’re were so many surprises that you don’t expect and it just keeps you wanting more.

Characters- The characters, I think are the best thing about this books! They’re fun, strong, bad-ass, and real. I was surprised to find myself really loving the new characters: Jude, Nico, and Vida…especially Vida. But what I really loved more than that, was seeing Ruby reunite with old characters. CHUBS! LIAM! Even though both reunions were completely different and surprising, it was amazing to see!

Liam and Ruby- One thing I really loved about The Darkest Minds, was the relationship between Liam and Ruby, and the way it ended in the first book was heartbreaking! I was so glad to see them finally reunite in this one, although I knew it wasn’t going to be the same. I was surprised to find out that even though Ruby erased herself from Liam’s memories, his feelings were still there. So when he saw her, he just knew.

Now lets talk about the one thing I didn’t like about this book:

Ruby- I just want to point out that yes, Ruby did have moments in this book where I did like her, but for most of the book she got on my damn nerves. Most of the time, that happened was when she was alone, or with the leaders of the children‘s league. She just seemed like a completely different person, at least until she got her friends back: Chubs and Liam. With them by her side again, she seemed like the same old Ruby, whom I did like. Without them, she was mean, rude, and just cold. I also didn’t like how she trusted Cole. I get that he looks like Liam, but he’s not Liam. You don’t know him, so why trust him? Why keep a secret from Liam, because Cole asked you to? You already messed with his memories, now you’re going to keep a secret from him about his brother? You should be trying to earn his trust back, not keeping secrets. It frustrated me.

WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN’T FINISHED THIS BOOK, THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS, OR THE INFERNAL DEVICES!

This story follows Simon and his time at Shadowhunter Academy preparing to ascend. I always end up loving Cassandra Clare’s stories. I think there’s so much that can be told in the shadowhunter world, and I never get tired of reading them! Once I start one of her books, I can’t put it down, and this one was no different. This book includes ten stories from Simons time at Shadowhunter Academy!

Welcome to Shadowhunter Academy: 4 stars

This one was the first story that we read, and was an introduction to everything. We get to see where Simon’s at mentally, and how he feels. For an introduction, I really found myself enjoying this one. Understanding where Simon was at mentally made a lot of sense. He lost all of his memories and he wanted to get away from the people who looked at him like he was hurting them everytime he couldn’t remember. We also are introduced to some new characters, both Shadowhunters and mundanes. My favorite, of course, was George Lovelace!

Favorite part of this novella: Isabelle coming in and telling everyone to stay away from her man! Go Izzy! Although what happened afterwards wasn’t very happy!

The Lost Herondale: 3 stars

This one, at least for me, was pretty boring. The students are getting a lecture about what the worst thing that a Shadowhunter could do is.We are told a story of Tobias Herondale from the guest lecture, and of course Catarina. I did enjoy reading Catarinas version, and what we find out is quite interesting. I was really annoyed when Clary portaled into Simon’s room, just to tell him to be nicer to Isabelle! Like yes, she’s going through a difficult time with Simon losing his memories, and not remembering her and the relationship, BUT SIMON FREAKIN LOST HIS MEMORIES, and you want him to be nicer? How about they be a bit more understanding? It just frustrated me!

The Whitechapel Fiend: 4 stars

This story was fun! We start off with the students having another guest helping out, this time JACE! He’s helping the students jump off a tree. Which is quite perfect for him. As usual, it’s always fun when Jace is around. We also get another guest lecturer, known as Tessa Gray. She’s telling the story of Jack the Ripper who was a demon and how they helped stop it. It was very nostalgic for us Infernal Devices lovers as we got to see Tessa, Will, Gabriel, and Cecily again! Simon also convinced Jace to go and talk to Tessa, and I really wanted to read how that conversation went! It would be amazing to see Jace and Tessa interact!

Favortie part of this novella: Every Jace and Simon moment! Seriously I need a novella with these two! It would be a lot of fun!

Nothing But Shadows: 3 stars

This one for me was kind of boring as well. We get to see James Herondale and his time at Shadowhunter Academy. I did enjoy seeing the relationship between James and Matthew, and that’s what kept me interested, but other than that, I was kind of bored reading this one.

The Evil We Love: 3.5 stars

I did enjoy this one more than the previous one! We got another guest speaker, Robert Lightwood, who was accompanied with Isabelle! Robert told the story of his time in the circle, and I found that really interesting. I always enjoy reading and learning more about the circle. I find it fascinating! I also enjoyed seeing Simon struggle about his feelings over Isabelle. He knows that she’s important to him, and that he cares about her, and you can really see that in this story!

Pale Kings and Princes: 5 stars

I loved this story! We got to see Helen Blackthorn come in and forced to give a speech about how cruel and manipulative the faeries are, which everyone already knew. However, because she is half Fae, they treated her like crap, and it was sad to see! I felt terrible for her, but she seemed so strong! The best thing about this novella was SIZZY(Simon and Isabelle)! we got to see them really open up and talk, and go on a date, and it was lovely! I really enjoyed this story!

Favorite part of this novella: EVERYTHING!

Bitter of Tongue: 4 stars

In this story we get to see Mark again, as Simon accidentally goes into fairy land. I honestly feel so bad for Mark. He believed that the Shadowhunters were coming to get him, but no one came. Because he is half Fae, the clave just doesn’t care about him anymore. Poor Mark, stuck in the Hunt. Seeing Isabelle come down to rescue Simon was amazing. Even trapped in the Fae world, they have there cute moments! Even though it was short, I loved seeing Simon at the wedding. It was nice to see him doing something normal with his girlfriend and friends.

Favorite part of this novella: Isabelle rescuing Simon!

The Fiery Trail: 5 stars

I’ve read some mixed reviews about this one, but I really found myself enjoying this novella. We find out that Emma and Julian wanted Clary and Simon to be the witnesses at the parabatai ceremony, which I though was so sweet! We also see Clary and Simon get tricked into drinking Lake Lyn water and taking the water to test to see if they could be parabatai themselves! I loved seeing this test and how it all played out. As well as seeing some familiar faces pop up! And of course learning that Simon and Clary can, and will be parabatai!

Favorite part of this novella: The water test itself, but also seeing Jace pop up in the tunnel of love with Simon! That was too freaking funny!

Born to Endless Night: 5 stars

This was just a lot of fun! We get to see Magnus and Alec adopt a warlock baby! I absolutely loved seeing Alec talk about this feelings with not only Magnus, but Simon as well. We never get to see that, so it was great to see what he was feeling. I loved how supportive the Lightwood family was over the baby! They were arguing over who gets to hold it next, and seeing Robert and Mayrse as grandma and grandpa Lightwood was adorable!

Favorite part of this novella: Pretty much everything!

Angels Twice Descending: 5 stars

This story was just amazing! Simon is almost ready to ascend, but we see him having to go and say goodbye to his mom and sister. I really loved the moment with his mom, but at the same time I felt bad for both of them. After he leaves, he’s not ready to go back to the academy, and decides to walk around New York, until he ends up outside his apartment he shared with Jordan, and Izzy finds him there. That all leads up to the Sizzy moment a lot of people have been waiting for. I just adore Simon and Isabelle! Finally we get to see Simon ascend and it was perfection! I honestly wasn’t expecting what happened to George and it was emotional.

We’ve been hearing about this for awhile, but to be honest, I really thought it got scraped and it wasn’t going to happen. But, I’m glad I was wrong. We officially have a date and teaser for this show.

Now the first thing that went through my mind when I watched this, was “Damn! Who are these people?” You see, it has been a long while since I read this book. I remember the major points of the story, but other than that, I forgot quite a bit, like most of the characters names(except for Hannah and Clay of course.) The next thing that went through my mind was “this looks like it’ll be good!” I don’t know about you, but I really enjoyed this teaser. It gives you just enough!

I’m trying to decide if I should reread this book before the show or not. I don’t remember much, so it’ll be kind of fun to experience it over.

Read a Sarah J. Maas book. I’ve heard great things about her stories, and I’ve been wanted to check them out. This will be the year that I do that. However, I can’t decide if I want to pick up Throne of Glass, or A Court of Thornes and Roses.

Read more adult novels. When I decide what book to read next, I tend to pick up a Young Adult or New Adult novel. This year, I want to branch out and read more adult novels. If you have any recommendations, I would love to check them out!

Reread my favorite books. I always enjoy rereading, but last year I didn’t reread any of my favorites. I would love to change that this year.

Participate in readathons. Last year, I didn’t participate in any readathons, and it made me feel like I was missing out. So this year, I want to participate in quite a few readathons. I have to do research and see what ones I would want to join in.

And that’s really it. Short and simple goals for this year. I also have some blogging goals for this year that I will share soon. What’re some of your reading goals for this year?

So this Friday, and the rest of the weekend I plan on reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. A classic of course! This is for the readawatchalong that is going on in the month of December hosted by Maureen. You can check out the announcement video here: Harry Xmas To You

Lately, I’ve been hearing so many people talk about audiobooks, and how much they enjoy them. It seems as if they’re getting more attention lately, and of course that’s not a bad thing. In fact it’s a great thing, because it means more people are reading!

However, for me, I could never enjoy an audiobook. Why? Mainly because I could never focus on the story when listening to them. I tried to listen to three audiobooks, and within the first few chapters, I would try to remember what I heard, and it was like my mind was blank. I couldn’t remember anything that was said.

A lot of people talk about how they listen to audiobooks on there commute to school, or work, during breaks, cleaning, working out, whenever they have free time. I think that’s fantastic. In a way I’m jealous of people who are able to do that. I tried listening to an audiobook while cleaning, and I could not concentrate on the story at all. It ended up frustrating me to no end.

I’ve come to the conclusion that audiobooks are just not for me, and of course that’s okay. I wish they were though. While reading, I cant be doing anything else. I just have to focus on the story. That’s why I’ll be sticking with my physical and e-copies.

How do you feel about audiobooks? Do they not work for you? Do you love them? If so, what has been your favorite audiobook that you listened to?